- In January 2021, there were 624 million internet users and 448 million social media users in India and the number is growing with every passing day.
- More than 32.3% of the entire population in the country uses social media.
- To not engage in digital marketing today is to lose out on potential customers and revenues.
- Arjun Nair, Co-founder, Great Learning shares a few marketing tips for SMEs.
Affordable internet and smartphones thanks to the ‘Jio’ revolution, followed by the pandemic-induced lockdown have led to unprecedented digital adoption in India. The biggest winners have been the social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn which have become our virtual spaces for meeting friends, sharing opinions and developing our worldview. Social media has not only enabled people to stay in touch but has also opened new avenues for marketers to target their potential customers. Considering the amount of time we all spend on social media, tools like Google Adwords, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads and Twitter Ads understand our basic info, usage pattern, likes and dislikes extremely well and offer enormous capabilities to marketers to find and deliver the right messages to their target audiences. While large corporations have been leveraging these tools for years, it is time that SMEs up their game and learn how to market online.
What makes digital marketing potent is its ability to target the right customers in cost-effective ways using deep analytics; something that SMEs with smaller markets can immensely benefit from. Digital Marketing provides them with an opportunity to launch personalized campaigns and tweak them at every stage based on the performance and insights, thus, making the effort meaningful and result-oriented. Here are a few digital marketing tips that can help SMEs make the most of their digital presence and accelerate business growth.
Chalk out a digital marketing plan
A well-defined digital marketing plan works towards fulfilling an organization’s marketing goals, provides a certain degree of protection and ensures efficient use of resources. In order to come up with compelling campaigns, it is imperative to build robust, data-rich digital marketing strategies based on specific marketing data points in reference to the target customer behavior. Personalization and automation can further fuel a campaign to make it impactful and effective to deliver the right messages to the right audience.
Make the most of social media platforms
Small and Medium Enterprises have suffered a huge blow since the inception of the pandemic last year. In order to boost recovery with limited resources, many businesses have opted to go for social media marketing. Social media platforms not only help brands to advertise and promote their products but have also proven to be one of the best ways to build a good rapport with the target audience and create an organic community. It is essential to have a fair sense of one’s growth patterns, trends, and insights to post relevant content on social media. One has to keep a track of all ongoing social media activities as well and participate in trends in line with business ethos. Interactive and engaging content goes a long way in catching the user’s eye on social media platforms.
Implement SEO
The foremost step to leverage digital marketing as a tool for any business is in-depth knowledge and integration of SEO or Search Engine Optimization. It deals with encompassing the keywords that will drive the business’ website higher in the search results of leading search engines like Google, Bing and more. SEO enhances the online visibility of your business and accumulates quality traffic for your business.
Content is the king
Content plays a key role in all forms of marketing, and digital marketing is no different. Hence, businesses must mark their presence on multiple digital platforms through creative and engaging content to interact with their existing customers and to get new customers interested in them. Sincere and continuous efforts must be put into creating content that showcases the values of the business in a creative, convincing and fun way keeping the TG in mind. Irrespective of the format, it is essential that the content businesses put out carries a clear message to their audience. Creativity and design should not overpower the primary goal of the post.
Seek regular customer feedback and testimonials
Customer feedback is as valuable as the customer itself. It not only helps in improving market position but also builds business ratings. Constructive feedback helps businesses in keeping a tab on their product flaws and work towards providing better quality services. Also, potential clients often look for credibility when it comes to engaging with a small business’s offerings. This is where testimonials play a big role as they offer new customers a sense of security and proof of your expertise.
In January 2021, there were 624 million internet users and 448 million social media users in India and the number is growing with every passing day. More than 32.3% of the entire population in the country uses social media. To not engage in digital marketing today is to lose out on potential customers and revenues. Using the right digital marketing techniques, tools and strategies, there is great potential for SMEs to grow their businesses to the next orbit. So go out and give it a try!
Publication: Business Insider
